Memories of Reach
by lolydaggle
Summary: 2589. Reach is newly terraformed. However, not many know of Noble team, and fewer still know of Noble Six, the lone wolf. An equally important team as Blue team. However, with the arrival of an archaeologist, things might just change. And Noble team may be thrust forth from the shrouds of ONI blacklisting.
1. Prologue

Reach. For years, it was the UNSC's primary military hub. A gleaming planet in the UNSC. Then, the Covenant came. Humanity fought valiantly for Reach. But in the end, even their best efforts were not enough. Reach fell to the Covenant on August 30th, 2552. The Covenant glassed this planet, like they did for many other. One ship, one very important ship, made it out. Thanks to the efforts of Noble team, the Pillar of Autumn, with the Master Chief and Cortana, made it out, and eventually discovered installation 04. And, as they say, the rest is history. Humanity had victory over the Covenant, and a new found alliance with the Sangheili. Reach still stood, as a glassed planet. But humanity had not forgotten the planet they fought for, the one as important as Earth. In November of 2553, a scouting team was sent, to assess the damage of the glassing. In July 7th, 2589, the terraforming was complete. Reach was once again habitable. But humanity had not forgotten the heroes who had died for the planet. Nor did they forget the hero who saved humanity from the Covenant. However, the specifics were still highly classified. Not many knew of the sixth member of Noble team. The one who had carried the Cortana fragment to the Autumn. The one who stayed behind. No, most of humanity was blissfully ignorant of him, and surprisingly, of Noble team. The member was given a small, private eulogy by Dr. Halsey. She was one who still new of the lone wolf. Who knew of their importance.

" _It didn't take long for Reach to fall: our enemy was ruthless. Efficient. But they weren't nearly fast enough. For you had already passed the torch. And because of you, we found Halo, unlocked its secrets, shattered our enemy's resolve. Our victory — your victory — was so close, I wish you could have lived to see it. But you belong to Reach. Your body, your armor — all burned and turned to glass. Everything… except your courage. That, you gave to us. And with it, we can rebuild."_

This is where we are. Humanity, not knowing who one of their heroes were. However, one man was going to change that. Even if he did not know it.


	2. Chapter 2

It was a warm day. Big, fluffy clouds hung around, but not too much. A few birds sang in distant trees. The view was spectacular. Snow capped mountains were in the background. The star hang high up in the sky. A ship is landing. A colony ship. Inside, carry new inhabitants for the planet Reach. As the landing gear touch the ground, the main door to the ship opens. Looking out is a small face. The face of a child.

"Bethany, get your behind right back into the ship!" A sharp voice cuts out. A hand cups around the child, Bethany. The hand pulls her back into the ship.

"You know better than to go outside before the ship has landed. How many times do I have to tell you? Your daddy is the first to go out!" The ship is properly landed now. The ramp down, and a man wearing a dirtied lab coat walks out into the meadow.

"But Mom," Beth complains, "I wanna go out and play! It looks so pretty out there!" The woman, Bethany's mother, has to agree. It was amazing outside. The air was fresh, nothing like the stale, sterile smell inside the ship.

"Well," She sighs. "You know the rules. You father has to make sure it's safe out before you can go out. And speaking of play, where in the world is your brother?" On the word brother, the mom stands up, looks around, and goes down a corridor, to the living area. Out on the planet, the lab coat man is in a hurried discussion with a security officer.

"Yes, I know that there may be dangers. But look around! This is obviously not harboring anything! Now if you excuse me, I really need to get my tools unloaded. There is that shipyard near Aszod that is prime real estate for me." He frantically flails his hands, trying to get the officer to understand his troubles. The officer merely sighs.

"Sir, Mr. Wilder, I understand you are anxious to explore this planet. But we need to get basic services set up here. You can't just leave your family in the middle of a meadow. Now if you will excuse me, I need to help out with the unloading process." And with that, the officer turns and heads back to the ship. Wilder, realizing the reality, starts to head back to the ship. As he re enters, he notices families lined up, waiting patiently to exit. Then he notices his own family, with his wife scolding his son about not being near his sister. His daughter was waiting impatiently, yearning to get outside. He takes a deep breath, and starts to speak.

"OK everyone. Welcome to the planet Reach. The security team is currently setting up basic services, and basic shelters should be up by nightfall. Everyone should stay in their designated zones, and when security gives to OK, you can go wherever. All kids must be accompanied by adults," He looked sternly at his daughter, "We'll start unloading now." He turned and walked back out to the planet.

* * *

The sun was dim orange now, as it set before the horizon. There was a low hum of insects, and a murmur of talking. The occasional yell of an excited child broke the silence.

"You're it, you're it, Alex is it!" Beth yelled as she tagged her brother, Alex. She giggled as she started to run away, dragging Alex towards a big group of other kids. All the kids screamed and broke into smaller packs. Alex kept chasing Beth, intent on getting her back. Suddenly, with a yelp, Beth tripped and fell down. She immediately started to cry, which attracted the attention of all the kids.

"What happened Beth?" was said multiple times over. The oldest of the kid had gone to fetch the father of Beth.

"Mr. Wilder," He said as he tugged on the man's sleeve.

"What is it, Jesse?" Mr. Wilder asked.

"Beth fell, and she's crying, and I don't know how badly she's hurt."

"What!? I told her to be careful." He started to stomp his way in the direction Jesse pointed at.

"Bethany, how many times did I tell you? Don't run too fast!" He beseeches his daughter.

"But DAAD, it's not my fault! I tripped over a rock!" But Mr. Wilder didn't hear, he was too busy checking Beth over to make sure she wasn't too hurt.

"Well, you should be fine. Wait, what rock?"

"That one, over there." He took out his pocket flashlight and shined it on the ground. He gasped at what he saw.

"That's not a rock, honey. It's a helmet."


End file.
